Matt Ryan running Falcons' offense 'as well' as anyone

Matt Ryan running Falcons' offense 'as well' as anyone

By Marc Sessler

Around the League Writer

Published: Oct. 30, 2012 at 10:04 a.m.

Updated: Oct. 30, 2012 at 10:45 a.m.

The Atlanta Falcons continue to operate under the radar despite being unbeaten and untied through seven games.
Matt Ryan has so much to do with that. During his first season in Dirk Koetter's offense, there's been zero adjustment period. Ryan has taken the wheel and dominated games.
Atlanta's offense ranks 13th in the league, a number tinged by their 24th-ranked ground game. This passing attack is dropping 271 yards and nearly 29 points per game on opponents. Atlanta followed form Sunday in a 30-17 thumping of the Philadelphia Eagles that saw Ryan throw for 262 yards and three touchdowns.
"He ran the offense as about as well as it could be run," coach Mike Smith told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I thought there was probably one throw early in the game that he would've liked to have had back. It was really the first throw of the game, but Matt is running the offense extremely well."
That problematic first pass? A second-down incompletion over the middle intended for Michael Turner. If that's your biggest mistake in the game, good luck to the challenger.

Ryan ranks third in passer rating (103.0) and he's thrown multiple scoring passes in every game but one in 2012. He has 17 touchdowns on the year, to just six interceptions. Ryan is more than a top-five quarterback. He's soaring toward the MVP.
The Falcons have done this before: Rip through the regular season only to flame out in January. This year's team offers something different, and I don't think Falcons fans have much longer to wait for a playoff win -- or more.